Education in South Africa: Achievements since 1994 ISDN 0 ...

[Pages:52]Education in South Africa: Achievements since 1994

ISDN 0-970-3911-2 Department of Education May 2001

CONTENTS

Education Change and Transformation in South Africa: .......................................................................... A Review 1994-2001 ........................................................................................................................... Preface and introduction by the Minister of Education, Professor Kader Asmal .......................................... 1. Education change and transformation: key strategic shifts 1994-2001 2. Innovation and change in education: laying the foundation of the post-apartheid education and training system ............................................................................................................................................... 3. Innovation and change in education: transforming learning and teaching............................................. 4. Innovation and change in education: building a nationally co-ordinated and planned higher education system ............................................................................................................................................... 5. Innovation and change in education: implementing the Human Resources Development Strategy of South Africa ................................................................................................................................................. Vision, mission and objectives of the strategy........................................................................................ 6. HIV/AIDS ....................................................................................................................................... 7. Partnerships and international relations............................................................................................. 8. Building an education and training system for the 21st century: Future challenges ................................ Bibliography .......................................................................................................................................

Acronyms

ABET AIDS C2005 CEM CHE COLTS DoE EDSU

Adult Basic Education and Training Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome Curriculum 2005 Council of Education Ministers Council on Higher Education Culture of Learning, Teaching and Service Department of Education Education Departments Support Unit

EMD EMGD EMIS FET FETC GEAR GETC HE HEDCOM HRD IPET LSM MTEF NEPA NEPI NGO NPDE NQF PRF SACE SAQA SASA SCE SRN

Education Management Development Education Management and Governance Development Education Management Information Systems Further Education and Training Further Education and Training Certificate Growth, Employment and Redistribution General Education and Training Certificate Higher Education Heads of Education Departments Committee Human Resource Development Implementation Plan for Education and Training Learning Support Materials Medium Term Expenditure Framework National Education Policy Act National Education Policy Investigation Non-governmental Organisation National Professional Diploma in Education National Qualifications Framework Policy Reserve Fund South African Council of Educators South African Qualifications Authority South African Schools Act Senior Certificate Examination School Register of Needs

Preface and introduction by the Minister of Education, Professor Kader Asmal

The last decade of the 20th century in South Africa, as we noted in the Implementation Programme for Tirisano 2001/2, will always be associated with the country's first national democratic elections. In April 1994, centuries of struggle against colonial and apartheid rule culminated in a peaceful transition to democracy. Fear was replaced by hope, repression by democratic freedom, exclusion and division by the possibilities of inclusiveness and unity. A massive national project to take down the scaffolding of apartheid and replace it with a system that promised well being, respect, and expression for all South Africans began. The project challenged us to rethink every aspect of our nation, from concepts of democracy, justice and prosperity, to the Constitution and its expression in policies, law and management. It challenged us nationally and personally to reconstruct our basic understanding of what it means to be South African.

The profound changes taking place globally during this same period framed our national project. As a nation, we took a conscious decision to understand the emerging form and function of globalisation, and locate our country as a competitive economy within this context. At a time when many observers were proclaiming the end of the nation state, we embarked upon a project that strongly asserts the responsibility of the government, in partnership with civil society, to develop a framework and environment for the emergence of a new national character. At a time of `global homogenisation' we committed ourselves to reclaiming our history and culture as the solid foundation for building a sense of meaning and vision for our people. We have sought to understand our specific geographic, economic, and cultural placement as a nation in Southern Africa, on the African continent, and within the `south', in a global world where power and wealth are unequally distributed.

This report reviews and assesses educational transformation in South Africa since the 1994 elections. Educational reform has been a central part of the country's reconstruction and development project. It has been driven by two imperatives. First, the government had to overcome the devastation of apartheid, and provide a system of education that builds democracy, human dignity, equality and social justice. Second, a system of lifelong learning had to be established to enable South Africans to respond to the enormous economic and social challenges of the 21st century. This paper outlines the government's efforts to address and reconcile these two imperatives in the first seven years of post-apartheid rule.

Section 2 of the paper reviews the key shifts in policy and practice in the last seven years. The first period of education reform had as its central task replacing minority rule, balkanised, racially resourced organisations, institutions and governance, with a democratic order marked by non-racialism and non-sexism. We sought to establish visionary policies, new organisations, institutions, governance structures, and resourcing patterns, supported by a sound legislation. The second period deepened systemic reform through the Tirisano programme, where key policy goals, undergirded by sets of targeted and prioritised interventions, aimed for stronger accountability for performance and delivery across the system. The third phase, having met some of the key challenges of systemic reform, is now focused on creating greater equity and quality of learning conditions, and improving standards and learner outcomes. A key feature of this phase is the deepening reform of institutional processes in all sectors.

Section 3 highlights the key pillars of systemic transformation - the establishment of inter-governmental forums and co-operative governance, and resource allocation. Section 4 presents our progress in transforming learning and teaching, through principles of lifelong learning, the National Qualifications Framework (NQF), curriculum transformation, values in education and systemic quality.

Section 5 overviews innovation and change in our higher education system and reviews the policy goals we had outlined for ourselves in Education White Paper 3 and the legislative and regulatory framework we created through the Higher Education Act in the first period. It then looks at the subsequent period of developing the plans for higher education restructuring which are now outlined in the National Plan for Higher Education.

Section 6 outlines the newly launched Human Resource Development Strategy for South Africa, a collaborative effort between the Departments of Education and Labour.

Section 7 takes up issues of HIV/AIDS and education. South Africa's reconstruction and development greatly depends on our determination and creativity in addressing the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The challenges are daunting, and the government is committed to responding to them in holistic and effective ways. Our concern must be for South Africans who are infected and, at the same time, for all of those who are affected by the disease. Responding to the HIV/AIDS pandemic will continue to be a priority for government, and the education sector in particular.

Central to our framing of policies is our belief that high quality education cannot be built by government alone: it depends on creative and dynamic partnerships between the public sector, civil society and external partners. Section 8 reports on these evolving partnerships.

In the final section, the report reflects on the challenges ahead. While addressing the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century, we affirm our commitment to overcoming problems from our past ? for many of the challenges facing South Africa in the future are rooted in our past. It is absolutely vital that we:

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Continue our efforts to build a public service characterised by quality, accountability, transparency and

efficiency.

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Continue to fight racism, reclaim our identity and reduce inequalities.

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Maximise effectiveness in our investments in education, while remaining within budgetary affordability.

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Continue to seek innovative partnerships with civil society, and build a dedicated community of

educators.

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Continue building the basic quality of general, further, and higher educational systems.

Within this complex of activity, the ultimate goals must remain in clear focus: ensuring that South Africans have the knowledge, values and skills required to facilitate social and personal development and economic growth, strengthening our democracy, our people and our nation. During the last seven years we took the first steps along this road, and we are now even more prepared than before to continue our march towards these goals.

Professor Kader Asmal Minister of Education

1. Education change and transformation: key strategic shifts 1994-2001

The demise of apartheid in 1994 was heralded nationally and internationally as a victory for democracy and human rights. It offered unique opportunities ? and responsibilities ? to reconstruct a fragmented and deeply discriminatory education system, and establish a unified national system underpinned by democracy, equity, redress, transparency and participation. This social reconstruction had to be linked to economic development in the context of global economies and internationalisation. The dual goals are captured in the mission statement of the Department of Education:

"Our vision is of a South Africa in which all people have equal access to lifelong education and training opportunities which will contribute towards improving the quality of life and build a peaceful, prosperous and democratic society." (DoE 1996)

For us, therefore, education is pivotal to economic prosperity, assisting South Africans ? personally and collectively ? to escape the "poverty trap" characterising many of our communities. It has also to reach beyond economic goals, enabling South Africans to improve the quality of their lives and contribute to a peaceful, concerned and democratic nation. And, education is now a basic human right, established in the Constitution (Section 29, 1996): "everyone has the right to basic education, including adult basic education" without discrimination of any sort.

In the first phase of education reform, the government placed much emphasis on developing legal and regulatory policy frameworks to facilitate change, including the establishment of organisations and institutions that created the conditions and structures for effective transformative actions.

Transforming the system during the first period: creating the framework (1994 ? 1997)

During this period, the Ministry of Education confronted three inter-related tasks: dismantling apartheid structures and creating a unified education system, creating a more equitable system of financing in a context of huge demands on our limited financial resources, and creating a policy framework which gave concrete expression to the values that underpinned the post-apartheid state.

1. Dismantling apartheid structures

The first five years of educational reconstruction focused on systemic reform geared to dismantling apartheid-created structures and procedures. Organisationally, this involved integrating formerly divided bureaucracies and transferring institutions, staff, offices, records, assets and more than ten million learners and teachers into a new system, without a breakdown in service delivery. The establishment of one national and nine provincial education departments, all new, was achieved mainly by new and old professional public servants, under the guidance of the Council of Education Ministers. The enormity of the task must not be

underestimated. Provincial departments of education are much larger and more complex than the national department, and faced acute problems in their inherited organisational structures. A unified system had to be created across diverse racial and economic conditions, and large geographic areas, in a short space of time. The new Ministry had to undo more than 40 years of formal apartheid education structures and procedures in a matter of a few years. This was an important pre-condition for policy development and new and more effective modes of educational provision.

The Ministry had also to pay important attention to its own nature and role. Organisational cultures from nineteen racially and ethnically divided departments had to be blended and reshaped, to define and meet common goals. New civil servants and those who had been part of the old order had to come together to mould a public service with a new working culture.

Systems and procedures also had to be changed to improve performance and outcomes, teamwork and customer-focused service in the spirit of Batho-Pele, a strategy aimed to improve human capacity at different systemic levels. The Ministry established the Education Departments Support Unit (EDSU) within the national department, following on the Ncholo Provincial Review report in 1996. The EDSU was funded by the Policy Reserve Fund (PRF), a conditional grant mechanism for strengthening management and enhancing quality in provincial systems. We initiated the District Development Project to develop new organisational models and to improve administrative and professional services at the district level, where the education system interfaces directly with learning sites. The Education Management and Governance Development (EMGD) programme created an inter-provincial network to effect staff and governance development programmes.

In these ways, the Ministry sought to create a quality, efficient, accountable and effective public service. This work is far from complete: it is not only about bringing people into a unified system, but also about the development of a shared vision, new values and attitudes, and the creation of capacity and an ethos that can drive achievement of organisational goals.

2. An equity-driven financing model of education

During this period, the Ministry established a more equitable basis for the financing of education (in particular, the extent and distribution of resources). In terms of the wider movement away from racial inequality, spending patterns were reoriented towards one budget, allocated on the basis of racial equity, and towards redress through funds made available from the Reconstruction and Development Programme. Primary school nutrition and school renovation projects were key programmes of the Reconstruction and Development Programme (1995-1997), reflecting the Ministry's resolve to target social development.

Significant and detailed attention was paid to strengthening and streamlining provincial budgeting processes, reforming the budget process through the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) of 1997, and establishing budgets that involved greater participation and realism. Key aspects were the provision of greater technical support to provinces from the national sphere, and the establishment of a budget based on greater institutional co-ordination rather than legislative prescription. Addressing the deep-rooted systemic and structural inequalities inherited from apartheid, and establishing a coherent redress and poverty targeting strategy continue to be an enormous challenge. Significant progress has been made, details of which are provided in Section 3, on budgetary frameworks and redress.

3. A policy framework for educational transformation

The energies of the Ministry of Education during the first period of democratic rule were applied to creating a sound legislative policy framework for educational transformation. Key policies and legislation in this phase included:

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The SA Constitution (1996) required that education be transformed and democratised in accordance

with the values of human dignity, equality, human rights and freedom, non-racism and non-sexism. It

guarantees access to a basic education for all through the provision that `everyone has the right to basic

education, including adult basic education,' The fundamental policy framework of the Ministry of

Education, set out in the Ministry's first White Paper, Education and Training in a Democratic South

Africa: First Steps to Develop a New System (February, 1995). This document took as its starting point

the 1994 education policy framework of the African National Congress. After extensive consultation,

negotiation and revision, it was approved by the Cabinet and has served as the principal reference point

for subsequent policy and legislative development.

? The National Education Policy Act (NEPA) (1996), designed to inscribe in law the policy, legislative and monitoring responsibilities of the Minister of Education and to formalise the relations between national and provincial authorities. It established the Council of Education Ministers (CEM) and Heads of Education Departments Committee (HEDCOM) as inter-governmental forums to collaborate in building the new system, and provides for the determination of national policies in general and further education and training for among others, curriculum, assessment, language policy and quality assurance. NEPA embodies the principle of co-operative governance, elaborated in Schedule Three of the Constitution.

? The South African Schools Act (SASA) (1996), to promote access, quality and democratic governance in the schooling system. It ensures that all learners have the right of access to quality education without discrimination, and makes schooling compulsory for children aged 7 to 14. It provides for two types of schools ? independent schools and public schools. The Act's provision for democratic school governance through school governing bodies is now in place in public schools countrywide. The school funding norms outlined in SASA prioritise redress and target poverty in funding allocations to the public schooling system.

? The Further Education and Training Act (1998), Education White Paper 4 on Further Education and Training (1998) and the National Strategy for Further Education and Training (1999-2001), which provides the basis for developing a nationally co-ordinated further education and training system, comprising of the senior secondary component of schooling and technical colleges. It requires that further education and training institutions, created in terms of the new legislation, develop institutional plans, and provides for programmes-based funding and a national curriculum for learning and teaching.

? The Higher Education Act (1997), which makes provision for a unified and nationally planned system of higher education and creates a statutory Council on Higher Education (CHE) which provides advice to the Minister and is responsible for quality assurance and promotion. The Higher Education Act and Education White Paper 3 on Higher Education (1999) formed the basis for the transformation of the higher education sector through an institutional planning and budgeting framework. This culminated in the National Plan for Higher Education in 2001.

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A range of legislation, including the Employment of Educators Act (1998), to regulate the

professional, moral and ethical responsibilities and competencies of teachers. The historically divided

teaching force is now governed by one Act of Parliament and one professional council ? the South

African Council of Educators (SACE).

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The Adult Basic Education and Training Act (2000), which provides for the establishment of public

and private adult learning centres, funding for ABET provisioning, the governance of public centres, and

quality assurance mechanisms for the sector.

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